Ukraine Reached Out To SpaceX Over Russian Drones Using Starlink: Defence Minister Fedorov

Ukraine’s Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov on Thursday said Kyiv had reached out to Elon Musk’s SpaceX to discuss that Russian drones were using internet from Starlink satellites for attacks.

“Within hours of Russian drones with Starlink connectivity appearing over Ukrainian cities, the Ministry of Defence team promptly contacted SpaceX and proposed ways to resolve the problem,” Fedorov said on social media.

He further said: “Western technologies must continue to support the democratic world and protect civilians — not be used for terror and the destruction of peaceful cities.”

“I’m grateful to SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell and personally to Elon Musk for their swift response and for immediately beginning work on a solution. Elon Musk’s decision

to urgently activate Starlink and send the first batch of terminals to Ukraine at the outset of the full-scale invasion was critical to the resilience of our state,” he said.

This comes days after Fedorov and a US-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) stated that the Russian army used Starlink satellites to guide its drone attacks deep into Ukraine.

The ISW said that “Russian forces are increasingly using Starlink satellite systems to extend the range of BM-35 strike drones to conduct mid-range strikes against the Ukrainian rear”.

According to AFP, Starlink is also widely used by the Ukrainian army for communications.

“Elon Musk’s decision to urgently activate Starlink and send the first batch of terminals to Ukraine at the start of the full-scale invasion was critically important for our country’s resilience,” Fedorov said.

“Western technologies must continue to support the democratic world and protect civilians, not be used for terror and the destruction of peaceful cities,” he added.

When Russian forces crossed into Ukraine in February 2022, the conflict initially looked like a conventional 21st-century war— tanks, missiles, air strikes, and cyberattacks.

Also Read: Russia vs Starlink: How Ukraine War Militarised Commercial Satellites; What It Means For India

It was for the first time in modern history, a privately owned satellite constellation played a decisive role in sustaining a nation’s war effort.

SpaceX’s Starlink, a commercial satellite internet service launched to provide high-speed broadband, became a lifeline for Ukraine. As Russian strikes crippled terrestrial communication networks, Starlink terminals allowed Ukrainian military units, government agencies, and emergency responders to stay connected. What began as an emergency workaround soon evolved into a core element of Ukraine’s battlefield communications.